Ephemera
by Mail Jeevus
Summary: It was just like L to stand out in the rain and catch hypothermia. Similarly, it was just like Raito to help him get better, no matter the cost. One-shot; LightxL.


"_Ce qui embellit le désert, dit le petit prince, c'est qu'il cache un puits quelque part..."_

_-Le Petit Prince, chapter XXIV_

_--_

_--_

In the entire expanse of time that Yagami Raito had spent chained securely to the enigmatic detective, he had grown quite accustomed to the other's various idiosyncrasies. Unfortunately, it seemed as though a good day did not pass for L unless he had surprised a member of the task force, namely Raito himself, with a new oddity that he indulged in. Today was one of those 'good days'. It was raining cats and dogs outside, and as the circumstances went, the owl-eyed male saw fit to drag his number one suspect out onto the roof on the spur of the moment during a particularly arduous frame of work. Thus, Raito found himself with an umbrella thrust into his hands (as that was the extent of the elder man's courteousness, since it _was_ raining outside) and led like a dog on a leash. It was all so abrupt that the brunette scarcely had time to protest. Perhaps that was a part of Ryuuzaki's grand master plan.

"Raito-kun," L murmured, stopping suddenly, disrupting Raito's step, "would you prefer the stairs or the elevator to get to the roof?"

Raito merely sighed in acknowledgement of his companion's etiquette, knowing that the answer to this question was immaterial. Grasping the handle of the umbrella much like one would a sword, he contemplated prodding the other with it, but, after a moment's deliberation, he decided that that would be too immature, even for his own mindset. Besides, the other was bound to find some reason to raise his percentage as Kira in the case that he did.

"The stairs, if you don't mind." Raito was—or had been—in a pleasant mood, after all, and he felt like walking in the warmth of the inside for awhile before he stepped out into the rain.

"I don't mind," the detective responded absently. Even if he had minded, nothing of the sort would have been betrayed by the infamous nullified line of his pallid mouth. L merely nodded his assent once and murmured "your decision" as cryptically as ever. One could have taken the response as needling or impassive, but with Ryuuzaki, it was difficult to tell by his usually bland monotone and vaguely defeated posture alone.

Venturing into the nearest stairwell took only a few short minutes, and L stopped at the foot of the long, curving steps to wait for his partner to keep up. As generous as the slack on their chain was, the detective was not one to be dragged up the stairs at the brunette's mercy; and he was certain the feeling was mutual. They could go up together. The stairs were wide enough for two men to walk abreast. Not particularly comfortably, but both were stubborn enough not to be the one tripping behind.

Raito conceded in the other's granting of passage, walking up to join the one chained to him. L was certainly right in thinking that he wouldn't like to be continually dragged along, but he wondered when the other had started caring.

L took the initiative and the first step, planting his bare foot firmly against the surface and levering himself upwards. His shoulders made contact on both sides, a smooth slide against the wall, and a forced grind--from the positioning of his ducking spine—against the younger Yagami male's upper arm, in that ambiguous place between shoulder and biceps. The detective retracted his chin further into his collarbones by way of making himself a bit smaller in breadth, but did not comment or apologize. He hadn't done it on purpose (although the younger might just perceive it that way). He slid his fingers from his mouth with a wet pop of the vacuum he'd created between his grazing teeth, choosing to drag his knuckles along the wall. The other hand succinctly found his pocket, with another small jostle on Raito's receiving end. There was a moment of pause to relieve an itch of Ryuuzaki's, and he stilled Raito by grabbing what part of his wrist he was comfortable with grabbing--the cuff, with just the barest clutch of his fingers. Then the other was released, and he began the climb anew.

Their ascent being basically wordless, Raito felt rather uncomfortable. It was different in the investigation room, when L would stare at either him or the computer screen for long periods of time in silence without any evident signs of stopping. Now, they had an imminent goal, making the quietude tense, or at least in the student's opinion. The contact with his wrist, too, out of the blue, almost made him jump, but he ignored that impulse in order to strike up conversation on their way up the stairs.

"So, Ryuuzaki..." he began, realizing that he had nothing to say. "...Why do you like the rain?" The boy almost slapped himself, realizing that this inquiry was sheer stupidity.

As per usual, L managed to look quite unassuming, even through the gesture of stopping Raito physically by laying hands on him. The question got his attention, and he turned his mild gaze to the other man, the corners of his mouth turning downward just slightly as he pondered it. Their silence must have become a shade too tense to bear for Raito to ask something so inane. Still, it wouldn't hurt to indulge his curiosity, he figured, since the brunette was being so agreeable about the whole ordeal.

"I can honestly say I haven't the faintest inkling," and honestly the reply came. Another moment of activity in his formidable mind, and then, "I just like the way it feels, I suppose." Ryuuzaki spoke the words mechanically, without conviction, supposing it a reasonable answer from anyone. You couldn't very easily put to voice whims.

Raito shrugged subtly at the reply, scaling the steps beside the detective.

"Is that so?" he questioned noncommittally, and quite rhetorically.

"And you, Raito-kun? Do you like it?" L safely diverted the conversation from the unknown, not particularly liking the vulnerability of being questioned and not truly knowing the answer.

The younger raised an eyebrow as the original inquiry was reciprocated, and marveled at the ease with which it was.

"I suppose...it's necessary. I don't really stop to think about these things."

"Necessary," L agreed, tone level, showing no qualms with Raito's answer. He merely nodded; the motion led by his sharp chin. Most people, when met with a conflict of views, would question the response, wanting to know why their opinion wasn't shared, or they might justify liking the rain for aesthetic purposes, the way it feels, et cetera. L was content to let that particular conversation point close, sucking in a small portion of his lower lip between his teeth. The detective was still mulling over the words spoken, however, the incidents that had led up to the discussion—it was visible, even behind his carefully neutral expression.

_Raito-kun doesn't stop to think about the rain_.

Making endlessly unnecessary parallels in his mind, he was indeed profiling him, pitting that remark up against the character he had managed to glean from both the Yagami boy and Kira alike. He didn't speak his reasoning aloud, although he was almost certain Raito-kun knew what he was pondering privately and quietly.

Raito found the monosyllabic answer to be both infuriating and intriguing, though both received sentiments weren't anything new; the detective himself was comparable to these.

The brunette enjoyed it, and he realized he had never properly thanked L for being…well, himself. It was nice having a challenging puzzle to solve.

"Thank you, Ryuuzaki," he said on the spur of the moment, so that he wouldn't forget later.

"You're welcome," the detective replied automatically, being so familiar with this social cue. In truth, he was not exactly certain what the boy was thanking him for, probably the umbrella, but he wouldn't bother to clarify. He took an almost sharp breath, as if in preparation for discourse, but filtered it out through his nostrils instead. They would reach the roof soon, where Raito could make use of L's...generosity, he supposed. He could have, always, dragged the other along tripping behind on the chain into the chilling sheets of rain without even bothering to offer the umbrella.

Raito could tell that L had no idea of the intentions behind his words, but he let it go, the 'you're welcome' being a satisfying enough answer, no matter to what it was directed. Even if he had wanted to say something, it was too late. The door leading onto the roof was imminent, and the brunette was almost thankful for the escape into the presumably freezing rain. He subconsciously prepared the umbrella for its eventual opening, eyes flicking ahead as if they were about to embark on something life-threatening.

If it truly was freezing rain, though, it could be.

"Shall we?" he inquired to the man chained to him.

The barest shape of amusement was on L's lips, and he paused so they could coordinate their exit together. How cavalier, how gallant of Raito to say such.

"Yes," he murmured, agile fingers on the knob, turning it without much warning. He urged the door open with his toes, hinges creaking. What was a dull pattering safely ensconced inside the hotel was a deafening roar on the flat of the roof. The detective strode out with some purpose, pausing with enough slack on the chain left for Raito to maneuver his umbrella open without having to first step out into the rain. As the sheets collided with his frame, it startled a small noise and a heavy breath out between his lips that steamed from the drastic temperature difference; the warmth of his body to the chill of the rain. Ryuuzaki held his palms up to it, almost instantly soaked. His dark hair spilling in rivulets down his cheekbones and between his eyes, his flimsy, oversized shirt plastering to his slender shoulders and torso.

"Raito-kun," L said, turning a prompting gaze towards his friend, although the downpour stole the sound away from his lips much like it had for his first exposed breath.

Unlike with Ryuuzaki, the rain never touched Raito. His umbrella came first, shielding him from the frigid torrent itself, but not from the chill it caused. He shivered slightly and directed his gaze to the sky and the source of the downpour, as if expecting to see god himself standing there, directing each droplet at his own divine whim. Of course, there was no such entity, and thus he turned his sights onto a more interesting character. L was soaked already, and they hadn't even been out for a minute.

He barely caught his name being called, and he blinked, clarifying the sound's existence in his mind.

"Yes, Ryuuzaki?" he said, quite loudly as to be overheard.

The sound reached the detective's ears, but it was muffled to whisper-decibel by the rain. L didn't answer, turning his own face to the sky, eyes closed. He had merely been prompting Raito out into the downpour. There was no need to try and shout over the force of nature. Shivers crawled up and down his spine in an endless circuit, but they were controlled and his lips parted slightly and dripping, puffing small bursts at the tail of each shudder. The eccentric man seemed almost pleased, contented, despite his body's healthy protests to the chill and damp. He turned his gaze towards his companion once more, after a moment, and his unwavering expression had cracked and frayed a little around the edges, was the smallest of smiles there, on his purpling lips. Ryuuzaki shuffled aimlessly through the growing puddles, kicking them up to create large, dark splotches to the knees of his pants.

"This is nice," he murmured, lowering his eyelashes, exaggerating the movements in his lips so Raito could read what he wouldn't hear, should he want to pay attention.

And read it he did, looking up once more to follow L's gaze instead of his own, only to find that the umbrella was less than accepting of seeing a view other than the webbed fingers that spread out to shelter the student. Unsettled by this, he cast it aside to attempt to see things from his companion's point of view. He, after all, was the one who seemed to be enjoying the vicious sheets of water that pounded on their bodies and the roof, thundering to provide a deafening symphony in the background. L was right; it was nice.

"Yes, it is," he agreed aloud, though he doubted that L would catch it.

Raito had his attention, however, with the casting of the umbrella, rather than with words. The smile on the elder's face slipped away to a thoughtful curve downwards as his gaze shifted to Raito's mouth, eyes sharpening to determine the shapes of words. They were gone before he caught them, and the remark went unnoted. The boy had left the safety of the instrument, although why, L didn't know. He padded a little closer, eyes looking in question at his companion. He cupped a hand around his ear, trying to funnel the sound of Raito's voice through the roar.

"Come again?" he mouthed, not bothering to put the force of breath behind it. The cold was working his lungs steaming hard, and his lips trembled slightly with the effort of keeping his teeth from chattering.

"It is nice," the brunette articulated, slowly and clearly. He was unsure if the detective could hear him, though he doubted that it really mattered. Raito lifted one hand and let the rain ravage it, as if this would create some understanding or assimilation with those who adored nature's tears. The answer did not come to him. Rather, he felt as though he was with an eccentric detective out on a hotel roof—in the rain. Perhaps he wouldn't understand the driving force behind Ryuuzaki, and he chided himself mentally in thinking that knowledge would come out of standing in the rain. The only thing that could have possibly come from that insane thinking was pneumonia. Or worse.

L still didn't understand what Raito was saying, but he let it slip by, shaking his head slowly, side to side. Raito would know, then, that he still hadn't heard him, but it was a trivial matter. He closed his eyes, moving the hindrance of dripping locks from the bridge of his nose, turning away. The line of his bowed spine now greeted the other boy, clothing close to his flesh and transparent with moisture. Ryuuzaki figured he had better drink in as much of the experience as possible before Raito thought the excursion blasé and asked to return to the quiet, safe warmth of their room.

After a moment's pause, Raito decided that, to get L's attention, whether to drag him inside or otherwise, he would have to make physical contact before he could make verbal, considering the conditions. He reached out matter-of-factly and made contact with the spot on the other's back, right between the shoulder blades, adding pressure to get attention. The student wrinkled his nose, vaguely hoping that he wouldn't get a life-threatening virus from standing, unprotected, in the rain.

_Then it would be just one less job for Kira_, he mused.

The musculature and vertebrae rolled and locked into stiffness beneath Raito's palm, making it clear how adverse L was to sudden, unwelcome contact. When he turned on the other male, his eyes were darkened vaguely into suspicion, as if he were cautious of physical harm. They settled into their almost vapid blankness, however, and the detective quickly slid his fingers protectively into his pockets. The movement took some force, with the compromised give of wet fabric. He drew breath to acknowledge the student, frowned, and let it out thoughtfully. Close as they were, the rain had increased its intensity in the last few minutes, and so the sound would be stolen before it made the distance. Ryuuzaki made a decision, bringing his mouth close as comfortable to Raito's ear, his poor posture nearly placing his chin at rest on the other man's shoulder.

"Yes?" L near-shouted, not adding 'Raito-kun' as per usual. Fewer words made less error in hearing.

The student immediately regretted his choice to make contact. The other seemed rather perturbed by the lack of forewarning, bringing to Raito the sinking dread that maybe his percentage had gone up, and by how much, and on what grounds. He ignored these internal questions in favour of answering L's monosyllabic and realistic one, surprised for a split second by L's means of communication; Raito felt like a schoolgirl whispering about some sort of unattainable secret. Nevertheless, he leaned in to place his lips right next to the detective's ear, hoping that the closer proximity would allow more sound to be heard.

"We should go in," he suggested plainly.

Raito's words were warm on the dark-haired one's ear, and it cut through the chill of rain, an odd, uncomfortable difference in temperatures that raised goosebumps beneath his clinging clothing. L frowned, hesitating at the suggestion, as if he might disagree. A moment or two, and he nodded his assent without moving away. His chin clipped on the brunette's collarbone vaguely when the motion was performed, causing him to start and take a step backwards. Realizing that the awkward approval may not have registered, he nodded once more quickly, decidedly, as if he were unnerved or embarrassed. Ryuuzaki's eyes stayed pointedly on his own feet.

The other's embarrassment struck an odd chord with the Yagami male, seeing as L wasn't one to bow to the awkwardness of social faux pas. He turned to retreat to the staircase, picking up the umbrella along the way, and his smile grew weakly as he looked back to indicate that he wasn't bothered in the slightest. Raito folded the tool in his hand and wrapped his fingers around the doorknob, looking to his friend as if waiting for prompting.

The forgiveness was noted, though the detective did not seem relieved or thankful. His expression was once again carefully blank, as if the embarrassment tainting it had been a trick of the light or a muddling of the steady rainfall. L shuffled obediently to Raito's side, hands tucked securely in his pockets, and gave a small nod of go ahead towards the door. He had yet to argue about staying out of doors, and he wouldn't. Were it his choice, Ryuuzaki would have stayed on the roof until the freezing sheets soaked through his skin and bones and to his soul. One of the disadvantages of being chained to the younger Yagami was that he now had two opinions to consider, as far as physical matters went, and was morally upheld to yield to the other man's feelings as well. After a moment's pause to gaze at him, a certain pointed weight to his dark eyes, L laid his mouth close again to speak to Raito:

"Thank you for coming along, Raito-kun."

It was quieter than it should have been, as if he was reluctant to say it.

Once the detective's thanks came, Raito had merely turned the knob. He hadn't yet moved to leave, as if he were hesitant to do so. Perhaps this was because he knew that when they went back inside, they were more inclined to go on working, and as much as the student was loathe admitting it...he was enjoying himself. The raven-haired man was surprisingly pleasant company.

A reply being in order for etiquette and delaying purposes, Raito moved in for a second time to murmur against the other's ear, remembering to stay loud enough to at least be heard.

"It was my pleasure, Ryuuzaki."

As he moved to draw away, however, he lost sight of depth perception, and his lips brushed against skin, much to his chagrin.

It was not in L's nature to point out unwanted attention, like Aizawa's powerful grip over Ukita's death, or the more recent incident of Raito's hand to his back. He would stand and endure it, or will it to go away, but never speak against it. He was, however, very close to being stunned into speech by that brush of Raito's lips along his jaw, as accidental as it may be.

"Rrr," he started, lips and tongue rolling into a guttural 'r', choking closed at the end. The "kiss", as it were, made the fine hairs on the nape of his neck stand in salute, and all of the blood in his body rush and pound in a race to flush his pallid features, much to his _own_ chagrin. Turning to face the other man for a breathless moment, there was an expression of near betrayal hovering over his neutral facade, as if he had been slapped. Ryuuzaki turned away just as quickly, instantly re-composed, pushing past his companion to open the door with a loud creak of the hinges and entering the landing dripping and silent. He scrubbed the cold water sliding down the strands of his hair away as he waited. Over and over, with the barest brush of his palms, the action cooled the dying pink in his cheeks. Just as well, perhaps then Raito-kun would not have to be witness to how disturbingly affected he was.

Raito frowned at the immediate reaction of his companion, wishing that he had been more careful in his retreat. Nevertheless, the damage had been done, and he followed L quickly back into the building, allowing the door to shut behind him, the sound of the impact muffled by the omnipresent pounding of the rain. His mind wandered back to the expression he had coaxed from the other, wincing at the knowledge that he would not have been so deeply affected on any other occasion, and furthering the shame that the Yagami boy himself felt.

"Are you okay, Ryuuzaki?" he questioned apologetically, wondering vaguely if he would answer truthfully, or if he would simply give the generally accepted response of 'yes, Raito-kun, I'm fine'. The latter, he mused, would probably be more comfortable.

L paused with his palms fanned out from his cheekbones, like a cat caught bathing, at the question. He dropped his hands slowly, giving the boy a long, considering glance. The truth would be considerably uncomfortable for either of them. Were Raito-kun smart about the incident, he would have said nothing, letting the awkward gap between them pass. But he was awaiting an answer, and L was praying to the powers that be that his infuriatingly insipid blush was fading away, even in the dim light of the stairwell. There were a few breaths of silence before the detective answered a simple "No."

There was no swell of emotion behind the words, nothing to make Raito believe him. Perhaps it was a sort of social punishment, for the boy even asking in the first place. Perhaps L wanted him to be uncomfortable, to put him on edge, for not letting the debacle slip away-for turning him so completely on his ears.

Raito didn't know where L got the idea that he would simply 'drop it and leave it alone', as he was usually inclined to figure things out, and not stop until he did. Hence the Kira case. He frowned at the lack of a response, however, though it was unexpected. The punishment was furthered; if the detective was going to admit that his welfare was suffering, even in the slightest, he was going to know why. End of story.

"What's wrong, then?" he pressed, eyes hardened as if to stress that he wasn't going to simply let the conversation slide. He was quite the annoyingly determined person, which was a trait he proudly received from his father.

_Stubborn, stubborn Yagami-kun_.

L's gaze was still as placid as ever, but never wavered. He blinked sagely and let the silence stretch—let Raito back down if he liked—which wouldn't happen. Still, the detective hoped for the impossible, but he himself was hard-headed, and not quite able to let go of his urge to punish the boy for it. He parted his lips to let out the quietest of sighs, shook his dripping head, and moved a fraction closer.

"Nothing that can be helped," he murmured, laying his lips in a gentle spot of warmth against Raito's jaw. No pressure, just flesh on flesh, as if his mouth were a seamless part of his friend's features. Ryuuzaki let his lips linger for a few moments, and then backed away, averting his eyes to the steps and taking a few down, distancing himself. Let Raito-kun interpret that how he wished, he was content with the outcome for now.

And he did attempt to interpret it. Though Raito was not as averse to human contact as L, he was still somewhat shocked by the other's audacity in putting his lips so close to his throat intentionally, and his eyes narrowed sharply. After all, anger was the only thing he could express when shocked by something that the detective did.

However, his known demeanor as a polite young man took precedence.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" he inquired a little loudly, unable to keep the venom from his eyes.

L had the grace, at least, to look surprised at the hostility in Raito's gaze.

"Why, no, Raito-kun, there's not," he answered honestly, voice dropping to hardly above a whisper: quiet but confident. There was a cold awareness in his docile eyes, and the mildest of stiffening in his spine. If the boy's anger ran to violence, he was ready. "I believe I've solved the issue to the best of my ability." After a moment, the detective murmured, noncommittally "We're both wet and cold. Let's go back and dry off." He turned, then, beginning to descend once more with an easy, measured pace.

Yagami Raito figured that, at this point, there was no use in arguing with the other, so he detained his rage and slipped under an adamantly placed façade, pretending that he had never become provoked by the other one. Instead, he chose to address the situation at hand: namely, being soaked to the bone.

"I need to change clothes," he noted.

"That is easily amended."

Ryuuzaki resisted the urge to sigh, pulling a handful of slender fingers from his soggy pockets to drag the knuckles along the wall. "Would you like me to call Watari when we return to the room?"

Things had settled back to normal. Excluding, of course, the fact that both males were soaking wet, shamelessly dripping on the staircase. For this reason, Raito treaded lightly, hoping not to slip on the pools of water they had made in their relatively slow-paced descent. He hoped that they could dry off soon; the brunette was growing annoyed by the frigid air that clung to his wet body as Ryuuzaki to his infernal sweets.

"Ah, yes, please, Ryuuzaki," he replied, sounding genuinely grateful. His eyes darted to the fingers tracing the wall and he sighed, noting how omni-presently immature the detective appeared.

Ryuuzaki declined an answer to Raito's polite affirmation. He himself was cold, and it was taking much of his energy to keep his teeth from chattering and to administer blood flow back to his purpling lips. The voluminous wet clothing was weighty, dragging him down, the baggy hems of his jeans a heavy wet slither on the tile. If he was as eager to dry off as Raito, then his glacial pace didn't show it. Huddled farther than usual forward, his ribcage nearly collapsed to his hips, L looked as though he was leaning against the wind, mouth trembling closed in front of his fluttering jaw. He moved closer to his companion as if to leech off his body heat, laying their arms together, shoulder to elbow. A small, shuddering sigh escaped the detective's lips, despite himself; it was truly freezing, possibly hypothermia, but he wouldn't let the Yagami boy know how uncomfortable he was by quickening their pace. Entertaining the notion of wrapping Raito around himself like a coat, L frowned and shook his head against it, instead leaning a fraction more inwards, pressing harder against his arm, unabashedly.

Raito's attention was drawn by L's outward aversion to the cold. Though he was trying his hardest to conceal it, the brunette could tell that he was freezing, hence his sudden desire to draw closer to the Kira suspect. He frowned at the display, wondering if the detective had some sort of biological distaste for the cold, and if it was potentially threatening to his health. That would have certainly explained the constant long-sleeved clothing and the paled expression. Regardless of the reasoning, however, the younger one was concerned, as was in his nature. So he aimed for a temporary remedy, rubbing his hands together to build a dry warmth and turned to clasp his heated palms on either side of Ryuuzaki's arm for a few moments, and then having the retreat so that he could repeat the process and lay his hands down again. He supposed it wouldn't help overtly, but it could latently palliate the impending hypothermia.

The detective blinked slowly at the steps his companion was taking to ensure his warmth, and looked over to Raito with a small amount of confusion. Well, at least it was an effort; no immediate warmth was seeping into his skin, but it helped quite a bit.

"Why thank you, Raito-ku—"

His eyes widened ethereally, and L began to find that the world was shifting under him swiftly. If his mouth had been working correctly at that moment, he may have uttered "Kira" in order to express his suspicions outwardly. The last thing he saw before his eyes, too, ceased their normal functioning, was the genuinely worried and panicked expression on Raito's face.

_What a convincing mask you wear, Kira-kun._

_--_

Raito did not know his way around the hotel at all, despite the amount of time that he spent there. Truly, he only dwelled in the main room of the task force, Misa's room, and on rare occasions, a spare bedroom where he was allowed the bliss of sleep. It was for this reason that he fled through the hotel, alarmed and unable to call anyone due to a lack of cognizance on where the hell they were, Ryuuzaki clasped bridal-style in his arms, passed out but still clearly alive.

The brunette's diagnosis was indeed hypothermia, considering that all of the symptoms were there. Now, all the detective needed was warmth and rest, two things that Raito was apt to offer him—if only he could find an open room. Most were locked tightly for no identifiable reason, but he pressed on, breathing laboured from running around blindly with a spindly man in his arms. What an odd situation to be in.

At last, at the end of the hallway, salvation arrived in the form of an open bedroom, presumably neglected by whatever force was sent to lock all of the doors in the first place. He crashed inside, not waking the detective at all, and stumbled to the bed, throwing his charge upon it with as much care as humanly possible, and ripping the sheets back in haste. Like a mother tucking in her child, Raito slipped L under the covers before climbing into the bed himself. His eyelids began to droop as he pressed in close to the unconscious one, hoping to shed his warmth. All awkward pretenses were dropped in favour of saving a person's life. He would be damned if anyone, even Ryuuzaki, could call him Kira-like after this.

--

Raito woke only hours later, merely for the fact that he was unaccustomed to sleep, and therefore couldn't stay in its grip for too long. He sighed slightly and shifted, eyes fluttering open. Confusion crossed his face for a moment when he realized that he was fully wrapped around the detective attached to him, head subconsciously buried in his chest. He pulled away sharply, as though stung, hands jerking to fall at L's sides.

"Ryuuzaki...?" he questioned, as though doubting the other's consciousness. This, he knew, was redundant to ask, since the elder one was a proud insomniac, this only being reinforced by the hypothermia.

The doubt was not a wasted sentiment as L had succumbed to slumber himself, the quieted hum of the waterlines and et cetera tucked away into the walls of the hotel and the rhythmic sighs of Raito's breathing being nearly too lulling an environment to resist. He had not even minded the weight of his friend's head on his chest, but was suddenly aware of the absence of it when the boy awoke. The sudden removal of the warm circle of the boy's body made him frown, but he too quit contact, if not a little reluctantly.

"Present," he answered, with the prompt pertness of a student. A beatific curve replaced the frown as he slipped his thumb between his teeth, and spoke around it. "Are you feeling better, Raito-kun?"

"I should be asking you the same question," the boy pointed out, unable to conceal the relief dripping in his voice. "You were the hypothermic one, not me. So how are you doing?" Raito had a feeling that all necessary warmth had seeped back into his friend's body, considering their proximity, but he felt that it was his duty to ascertain this from a first person source. This had stemmed from as far back as his first year in secondary school.

"Much better, thank you," Ryuuzaki answered politely, hugging his arms around himself. He missed their previous contact more than he would like to admit, and it was suddenly much chillier with Raito's movement nosing the blanket down around their hips. His own clothes had dried nicely, only still damp in parts, like the heavy creases in his jeans, but it was manageable. The smile died on the detective's newly pinked lips, and he gave his friend a considering look. "Although, I'll have to admit, Raito-kun, I am not necessarily eager to return." Not necessarily eager to leave the settled warmth of the bed, but he assumed that went without saying.

"Then what would you like to do?" Raito questioned. "I suppose you can stay in bed, considering that you just recovered from hypothermia—and we still can't be too sure of that." The boy tilted his head to vary his view of the other. L truly was an odd person, as viewed from a higher angle. In a way, the brunette felt at an upper hand from here, but shook away the triumphant feeling as though it were harmful.

L slid languidly down back into the covers, negotiating his torso at an angle to slip the covers up over his shoulders, maintaining eye contact. He shrugged in an almost clandestine manner, sitting up so that their faces were level once more, but in a way he was not devoid of the warmth of the blanket.

"Stay here," he answered automatically, nodding the affirmative, gaze dissecting, as if he expected Raito to protest. "And I can assure you that I'm completely recuperated; the initial danger has ebbed. Early symptoms of hypothermia include shivering, confusion, and difficulty walking or standing, which I have previously displayed. As of present, I am answering your questions easily and have regained full consciousness. However, my clothes are still wet in parts and it's uncomfortable where the air hits it." He had defended his decision aptly, and so ended the speech with another small nod.

"I think you're forgetting that we're chained together," he offered, lifting his left wrist in order to remind his friend of their bondage. "So even if I was possessed to leave, there would be no way I could, so really I have no say in this. Not to mention that you're more interesting than anything else I'll find in this hotel, so returning to work—especially at the impasse that we've reached—would be disappointing." Mirth rose on Raito's face, and he shook his head.

All initial geniality was pressed firmly away by the now stern line of Ryuuzaki's mouth.

"Raito-kun, you know the conditions of our bondage."

He lowered his gaze to concentrate on a torn cuticle, which he dug at with his nails.

"I didn't do it because I wanted to." This particular accusation seemed to be spoken quite often, mostly by Misa Amane. She was so persistent about it that she might have a lesser intellect convinced of his supposed ulterior motives.

"Although I admit that you _yourself_ are excellent company, and certainly more interesting than anything else in this hotel." The sentiment was expressed with the utmost seriousness, the detective raising his gaze once more to find Raito's with gravity.

"I'm glad you feel that way," Raito commented lightly. "It would have been awful if I took to you and you hated me in return. We'd never get along." He shrugged good-naturedly, determined to keep the mood from dropping anymore than it had when the bondage had been brought up.

L favored him with a diminutive smile, and the softest of chuckling breaths. He could easily recognize Raito's attempts to elevate the mood, but he was somber by nature, and so it was amusing. What an accommodating boy he was, this son of the chief.

"I wonder," Ryuuzaki said blandly, the curve of his lips banished once more. "For how well we get along, and how much you claim to value my friendship...if that would matter if you were Kira. Would you show me mercy, Raito-kun, because I'm your friend?" He leaned forward a fraction, peering intently into the boy's eyes. "Just how much do you like me?"

Though the smile and laugh—no matter how minuscule a gesture—had pleased him, the latter sentiments brought a troubled frown to touch at his lips. L always had to make things difficult, didn't he? Raito shook his head. No matter...if the detective wanted an answer, he'd get one. In light of the Yagami boy's innocent and unwavering demeanor, it was obvious what the answer was to be.

"I'm not Kira, Ryuuzaki," he opened, reminding the other as though he had forgotten the constant denial. "But if I were...I think that I would be reluctant, especially with how much I value you."

The answer was nearly verbatim what L had expected, and still he was not quite satiated.

"I appreciate your reluctance to take my life, and I expected you to say as much. I value you as well."

He paused for a moment to shift amongst the tangle of blankets he had made, inching in a fraction further, to where their knees caressed. "As it stands, in the events that have unfolded in the past few weeks, you have nearly cleared yourself of suspicion, Raito-kun. I intend to keep your regard for me high, and perhaps even broaden it a little. Perhaps it will be my salvation, if you aren't Kira." Ryuuzaki's agile fingers reached out to grasp Raito's wrist, which he snatched with a gentle speed, raising it up to lay the pulse point against his lips. His little social experiment would have produced equal results, he was certain, if he had kissed Raito full on the mouth instead, but he was uncertain if he desired that particular contact.

Still, it didn't matter either way; the motives behind his actions had been fulfilled.

Raito's breath immediately caught in his throat.

It wasn't merely the fact that he had been—for a lack of a better term—kissed by L as it was the fact that it was _L_ who had kissed him. It was obvious that this was his intention, as evident by what had been spoken before, and the manner in which it was done. The student was determined to continue his regular breathing in order to avoid losing his wits. He was afraid that they had already passed him by.

"Ryuuzaki...what are you doing?" he questioned, voice forcedly level. It was odd what kind of reaction such a small gesture could elicit.

"I am elevating our relationship, Raito-kun," the dark-haired one answered, his own tone level, but not by force. "From friendship to physical intimacy."

The addendum was most likely unnecessary, and he would not have spoken further, had the boy not seemed so bemused. "I think that it is a natural progression, to further your affection for me." Raito's moment of breathlessness had not gone unnoticed, and it was an interesting reaction. L met his gaze, making sure his own eyes fairly dripped with his intentions, and he repeated the kiss, with more force. There was a quiet popping of the vacuum he created with his lips as he drew the flesh over the pulse into the cloying warmth of his mouth and pressed his tongue against it.

"I could kiss you on the mouth, should you like that better," Ryuuzaki murmured against the pale love mark he had made.

"I don't think that is necess—" he began, then feeling the warmth of the slick muscle against his flesh, inhaling sharply in surprise to cut off whatever else he had planned to say. There was no doubt that his cheeks were colouring fiercely at all of this, though if asked, Raito would have blamed it on the natural reaction of a teenage boy to such treatment.

L felt a weight in his chest and abdomen upon the sight of the color in the Yagami boy's cheeks, and it was uncomfortable—perhaps he had taken this little experiment a bit too far. He faltered against Raito's wrist, watching his friend struggle with interest. Ryuuzaki drew a thin stretch of the flesh on his lips between his teeth, considering his options.

"You—" he began, choking on the close of the word, his own throat gone tight inexplicably. He swallowed audibly, and tried again. "You didn't say no," he finished, voice soft. Without a second to spare on thinking about it, he rested his palms on the boy's forearms, leaning in to connect their mouths in a gentle, tentative caress.

Yagami Raito's stomach clenched, making him seize up in shock as the lips connected with his own, until the foreign sensation subsided and he felt only warmth, shoulders relaxing. Unfortunately, his sense of pain returned as well, and he realized quite suddenly that his companion's actions had shocked him enough to send him careening into the headboard and knocking his head. His stomach's conflictingly unfavourable reaction to the contact spread down to his toes and back upwards abruptly, his cheeks now painted with a delicate crimson.

L made a soft noise of sympathy when he heard the resounding crack of Raito's skull against the headboard. Alarmed, his hands fled from the boy's forearms, upwards, to touch the affected area, having him nearly crawl into the younger's lap to negotiate the movement. The hair there was soft, ran easily through Ryuuzaki's threaded fingers, and was thick enough for him to grasp gentle handfuls. His concern for injury had rocked the detective out of his near-trance, and he was acutely aware now of his lack of adeptness for this new pastime. What he was supposed to do next was truly beyond him, and he froze there, fingers tangled in Raito's locks, breathing against his mouth. Whatever the nature of the sound his friend had made, it made a shudder course down his spine, but he remained still and uncertain.

Raito was mildly surprised to find that his hands had settled onto the detective's waist, fingers pressing enough to leave a bruise later on. The intoxicating feel of L against him—he couldn't help but to discern this as terribly unfitting...and it was just as discomfiting to realize that he enjoyed it.

"Why...why did you stop, Ryuuzaki?" He questioned lowly, eyes half-lidded, stomach wrenching again as he took the initiative to brush his lips against the owl-eyed one's, curious for the warmth and feeling again.

The authoritative grip on his waist was enough to make Ryuuzaki's spine arch a fraction, and tore a small, shuddering sigh from his lips. A seed of heavy warmth sprouted low in his abdomen, radiating in waves to raise goosebumps and color his cheeks. There was a mild wash of panic beneath his body's betrayal in response to the touch, as he himself was disturbed to find he enjoyed it. He was bemused, vision clouded, and Raito was asking him a question he thought he ought to answer, but the tone in the other's voice made his throat tighten uncomfortably.

"I, w-well," he stumbled, the words almost anxious. It quickly slid into a startled hum, an "mmm" deep in his throat, as their lips met once more. L opened his mouth in reaction, his grip in Raito's hair tightening slightly.

The automatic response to the parting of L's lips was completely involuntary. Raito's tongue reached out and glided softly across his friend's bottom lip, making sure to trail it slowly. By this time, he could hear his heart thumping in his ears, and that was all.

The teasing slip of Raito's tongue was intense and nearly painful to L: turned his knees into water and his heart pound against the fickle cage that was his ribs. Ryuuzaki groaned, jaw yawning open, his own tongue intercepting to push and taste commandingly. Still there was that panic below the rolling waves of his pleasure, a disturbing side-effect of an uncomfortably active mind. He was contemplating beyond this simple, human need, what damage could be done from wanting to consume Raito whole, here, in this anonymous room. His desire frightened the detective, but didn't stop him from relieving one hand to slide it up under the hem of the boy's shirt and wondering at how warm his skin was, and how solid the musculature under his tender fingertips. L cursed his newly active libido--it was making him a fool.

Once the feeling of skin on skin hit the younger one, he reeled with the cold contact. A moan ripped from his throat and his hands drifted farther up the emaciated waist, yearning for some kind of motion, any kind of reciprocation. However, he wasn't giving up yet. He battled the other one back with his tongue, attempting to retain status in this situation, too.

Ryuuzaki felt mildly irritated by this need of Raito's to be superior, although it was difficult to feel anything over the surge of inane pleasure at hearing him make those particular noises. Sighing into the boy's mouth, he allowed himself to be explored, allowed his tongue to be dominated, lips and jaw going to docile ligaments and soft flesh. He had a new agenda to attend to. Removing his other set of toying fingers from his friend's hair, he slid them up under the shirt to join its partner. L went about his work with the thoroughness of a physician, finding the faint hollows of Raito's ribs, the gentle bow of his hipbones, and the tender points of his nipples.

Perhaps Raito should have been unnerved when those godforsaken hands began those marvelous patterns over his abdomen, chest, and any other accessible place. A tremendous pressure was pooling in his middle, much to his subconscious(') vexation. The forefront of his mind was reeling in ecstasy, not particularly caring about the ethics of the situation. It was his own fault, he supposed, though his clouded mind couldn't fill in a reasoning just yet. He'd save that for when there wasn't a famous detective violating his mouth and chest, because he had managed to discern enough to pinpoint this as the reason for his physical and mental condition. The furthered touch surprised him enough for his mouth to open a bit wider (if this was possible) and release his needy hold on the lips of his friend.

Ryuuzaki's kiss-swollen lips hummed pleasantly with the sudden brush of cool air against them as he lowered his chin to gaze thoughtfully at Raito's torso, pondering how best to manage his movements. The intent expression he wore was the same for every puzzle he met, if not a little blurred around the edges and crimsoned with...lust, for lack of a better word. If he wasn't knee-deep in hormones and slipping further with every minute that passed, the detective would have probably shied away and found some way to defend his actions. As it were, he concentrated only on tucking the fabric of the boy's shirt up under his arms, giving him a full, uninhibited view of the abdomen he had come to know so well in the past few moments. Steadying himself with palms on Raito's thighs, L inclined his head, extending his tongue to the slender trail of hair above and below his navel. Licking along the line, the difference in textures intrigued him, and so he repeated the motion, making a small hum of interest.

Raito's hips inclined almost immediately of their own volition. The area that L was attending to was tingling horrifyingly, though not in a negative way. It just made his wanton breaths heave louder and quicker. His hands, now orphaned in his companion's movement, fled to tangle in the detective's hair, circling over his scalp in the motion of his erratic inhalations.

"Mmmm, Ryuuzaki..." he began, but nothing further passed his lips.

The fingers grasping at the elder's hair elicited a sharp, involuntary gasp from Ryuuzaki, and he panted against Raito's stomach, squeezing at the boy's thighs to help him ride out the sudden weakness that spilled over his entire frame. Biting back an expletive, he returned the speaking of his name in a breathless moan.

"Ahh, Raito!"

L sagged near bonelessly into the younger's crotch, before re-gaining his incentive, travelling from thighs to hips. He settled his weight there, moving his attention higher, to his companion's collarbones, which he licked along with candor, above and below the clavicle, down to his nipple, which he flicked his tongue around in a languid circle before rolling the tip between his teeth.

The student's eyes were cast to the ceiling, his pants all too audible at Ryuuzaki's unbearable ministrations. The tongue's new placement coaxed a fresh groan from his throat, reflecting all of the pent up lust built up by this unfamiliar treatment. The sensation was so amazing that Raito had to wonder what had made the owl-eyed man so skilled. It couldn't have been actual experience, after all, could it? L was altogether too averse to human contact. Then again, that didn't explain the need that he invoked. The younger one remained puzzled, but that may have been due solely to the other's talented tongue and roving hands.

The Yagami boy's fingers tightened in their nest, but not enough to hurt the older man.

"This really isn't...fair...Ryuu..." he began, not finding heart enough to finish the pseudonym. He was, of course, referring to the fact that he was the sole one on the receiving end.

L lost his direction at the renewed grip in his hair, mouth going slack around the flesh he had been teasing as he struggled to recall how to breathe air. It sent a long shudder crawling down his spine, and made his vision blur. Despite the younger's best intentions not to hurt him, the sensations were intense enough to walk that thin edge between pain and pleasure. So, the enigmatic detective liked to have his hair pulled--he would have never guessed. He slid upwards carefully to meet the other's gaze, grasping at his wrists and untangling them gently from his mass of dark hair, to better concentrate on what was being said. "What's not fair, Raito-kun?" he asked against the brunette' s mouth, voice low and rasping from the disturbing lack of oxygen in the room.

The male opened his mouth to reply, but lost his train of thought at the closeness. He inhaled sharply to fuel his speech, and sighed it out briefly, having the carbon dioxide ghost over his friend's lips. His hands went to rest gently on the other's chest, feeling so perfect there, and hating it at the same time.

"You're touching me," he purred slowly. "I can't help but feel as though I'm depriving you of the same, Ryuuzaki." His eyelids drooped slightly, but not out of weariness. In fact, Raito was as awake as he'd been all day: alert and all too willing. A smile touched his lips, and despite what he had just confessed to the other, he yearned for more. His own need disgusted him.

Ryuuzaki hummed vaguely, distantly, the sort of soothing noise one would make to make their listening presence known on the receiving side of a dominated conversation. The bare minimum of speech. He himself was unnervingly distracted by how close Raito's lips were to his own, and they parted eagerly, immediately, at the warm sigh of his friend's breath. Whatever had changed in L to make him so hung up over the other's proximity was very pleased with the purr in his tone. Swallowing audibly, it took a few moments for L to gather the necessary wind to reply.

"Whatever you'd like," he demurred, stupidly, returning contact by dragging his pressurized fingertips down Raito's sides.

"Just..." the brunette began, the parted lips enticing him blindly to lean forward and claim them with his own once, then twice, and then a third time before drawing away, intent on completing his sentence. Raito shook his head mildly in order to regroup his thoughts and give his friend a straight answer, but the hands on his sides were just distracting enough to fragment the rest of his explanation. "...whatever you do..." His fingers curled around the soft fabric of the detective's shirt, attempting to stabilize himself somewhat, as though a more tentative touch would send him careening away from L altogether. "...don't stop." A triumphant sigh escaped his lips to punctuate the breathy finale.

L dragged a thin stretch of his lower lip between his teeth, gnawing at it unhappily. The order to continue was unnecessary.

"I won't. I don't...want to," Ryuuzaki admitted, grasping the boy's hips with some authority, to match the grip on his shirt. Angling his chin, he pressed his lips against the pulse in the hollow of the other's jaw, applying his tongue and teeth gently. "Whatever you want..." he continued, hoarsely struggling to express himself despite the pressure in his chest and clenching stomach.

"_Whatever you want from me, Raito_..."

Raito didn't know what surprised him more: the incredible heat on his cheeks or the lack of honorific at the end of his name. It was a petty thing to be concerned about, but this was L, and circumstances were undoubtedly skewed. Not to mention the odd turn this had taken. At one moment, Ryuuzaki was calmly telling him that he had recovered from hypothermia, and now they seemed to be drowning in their lust. It was a sad state to be consumed with, really, for two alleged genii. But it wasn't as though the boy didn't know the answer to this newest proposition posed. In fact, it was never clearer.

"I want...you, Ryuuzaki," he murmured, chest rising dramatically with each breath he took, realizing just how strange this sounded from his own mouth.

Despite the questionable state of the two of them there, in the disheveled bedspread, L had resigned himself to the fact that even geniuses were human, and it was difficult to deny the animalistic tendencies of humanity. The events leading up to this point were of no real consequence to him at the moment, indeed he had almost forgotten them under the strange magnetism of the way Raito's breath hitched when he touched him. When they were reasonable, intellectual beings again, they could discuss exactly what had happened. But until then, Ryuuzaki set aside all of his doubts and reveled in the little thrill he felt when he heard his companion's answer.

"Then take me," he replied, naturally, it being the most practical phrase that came to mind. Like everything else that the male said, this was formed as a demand—he was the younger one's superior, after all.

Adrenaline coursed through Raito's entire being at the request, giving him a sense of 'all or nothing', and he did indeed intend on taking all of L as had been asked. Those simple words made him shudder and moan quietly, actions insinuating of the future as his hands released the shirt that had been mangled in his clenched fists. Those same hands darted under the detective's usual white garment and fingers splayed against the skin, shoving backwards slightly as if to throw his companion off-balance.

"Yes," came the simple answer, wantonly said and wantonly followed.

The shove knocked L backwards, merely because he was unprepared and pliant with his need. Ryuuzaki grunted softly as his lower back collided with the mattress, elbows catching him half-raised, bouncing a little on impact. He struggled, eyes widening. Agile fingers reached out to ball up handfuls of the boy's shirt, much as he had been doing a moment before, and he gave a tug to lay Raito's stomach and hips against his own. The detective released his grip on the fabric to clutch at either sides of his friend's jaw, pressing their mouths together firmly, lingeringly, just because he liked the way it felt. It was a chaste gesture, nearly prudish compared to the ones he was indulging previously.

Raito praised the detective for doing hhim and switching their roles, skipping any attempt to remove the other's shirt, considering the chain. To be truthful, he was surprised he had remembered its presence at all, though he supposed the sudden feeling of cold metal against warm flesh was reminder enough. He took his time to examine the skin under his fingers for an excruciating moment before they slipped downwards and massaged at the area just above his friend's waistline, as if begging permission. The kiss earned an immediate parting of lips, and he eventually realized that he was straddling L. Not that he hadn't found himself in this position before; the two fought quite a bit.

L granted his tongue immediately, without hesitation, pushing around the now-familiar territory with abandon. He had to pull away for a moment, however, with the teasing brush at his navel, a long shudder flowing down his spine, making it arch. The groan emitted in response was probably louder than it should have been under any other circumstances, but his entire body was hyper-sensitive with the long attention to Raito's. Every hitched breath and excited sigh or moan previously uttered from the boy had sparked a similar response in Ryuuzaki, and he was now almost painfully ready.

"Ahhh" was all he managed in explanation, closing his eyes tight around a sudden light-headedness as he ran his palms down the younger's forearms, to grasp nearly white-knuckled at his wrists.

That incomprehensible sound was all the invitation the brunette needed to unclasp the button to his friend's jeans with shaking fingers and tug at them impatiently, lifting his own body with his thighs to allow the garment to slip downward and pool around an obscurely chosen place, knuckles grazing the fabric underneath with a peaked curiosity and an insatiable carnal hunger. His mouth eased this a bit at its station against Ryuuzaki's, almost devouring the other. His fingers flew to cup the half-covered erection that was sure to be there. Raito's cheeks flushed an even darker shade of red, but he wasted no time in rubbing that spot insistently.

A long, low groan tore away from Ryuzaki's lips as he turned his head away, pressing his cheek against the cushion, eyelids fluttering. He did not want to be kissed anymore—at least, not on the mouth, not with the rate of oxygen leaving his body in heavy pants before he could draw it in again. Frantic fingers grasped at the sheets around the spread of his body, for fear if he let go he would tilt of the edge of the planet. The detective was nearly euphoric. Never in his life had he been touched in this unseemly manner, and probably never again, but it was so painfully enjoyable that the noises kept coming in contractions, if not a little feeble with his alarming lack of breath.

"Oh, Raito, Raito..." he chanted, charmed, the sharp ridges of his hips pulsing gently of their own accord under the boy's attention to what lie southwards.

Each sound elicited from the other sent a new stab towards the pooling sensation around Raito's middle. Hearing his name being spoken merely escalated the situation, sending something dangerous sparking behind clouded eyes. His rubbing quickened in pace until the barrier between the cloth and what lay beneath grew too unbearable for the student to put up with. His thumbs curled around the waistband of the underwear and jerked them down as well, breath hitching for the umpteenth time that day before he leaned down to inspect what he had unveiled at a closer range. Finding it to be satisfactory, he allowed his tongue dart out and flick over the tip before the wet muscle applied pressure slowly. His eyes rolled back in his head, and it took several long hard blinks to knock them back into their determined post.

L gasped desperately for air, rolling his head back as his own eyes made a beeline for the sheltered darkness of his skull. The elder bit back the urge to shout an expletive, pinning his lower lip firmly between his teeth, nearly drawing blood. More tongue, more warm, wet pressure on more of his flesh and his knees buckled, grip tightening white-knuckled around the handfuls of sheets. He gasped with feeling, although part of him wished very fervently for this whole ordeal to be over.

Every sound now fell upon deaf ears, including the hoarse, needy breaths that hailed from both men and the rough pounding of their hearts in some animalistic symphony. Perhaps if Raito could have heard it, he would have deemed it the most beautiful sound in creation; however, he was too busy working his tongue along the shaft presented to him. Soon enough, he took the entire thing into his mouth and sucked vigorously, stopping these ministrations almost immediately to revert to his previous actions—the softer ones—and then the cycle was repeated with enthusiasm.

The sucking was a new level of euphoria, Ryuuzaki's delighted, primal murmurs of adoration falling away completely only because he had quite forgotten how to breathe air. The entire world bled to white in his shock, and he shook, boneless, helpless. When he was released for a repeat performance of the less heart-stopping application of Raito's tongue, he let out a long, trembling sigh, rattling moist with lust from his lips. The sigh ran quickly to a loud groan, nearly a scream forced through his clenched teeth, his swan neck mottling with the effort. Shoving his knuckles forcefully between his jaw and soft palate was his way of amending for the noise. Perhaps he was being unnecessarily paranoid, but the elevated decibel of his sounds was likely to be heard by someone, should they happen to be passing by. He did not want to be discovered this way.

In this position, weak and perspiring, L was vulnerable.

It was difficult to believe that this man—the one who had closed so many cases that the police couldn't even fathom, the one who had come so close to capturing Kira, the very one who guided the world's judicial system with just an affirmation of his synthetic voice over a laptop speaker--was currently writhing under Raito in pleasure. Had he been cognizant of his identity as Kira, perhaps the student would have reveled in the power. Now, however, he was simply an over-ambitious college student with an overactive sex drive and a certain case of Stockholm Syndrome. At least, this was what consoled him throughout the entire process he inflicted upon his friend and rival. There were plenty of valid excuses for his behaviour, as were there for L's as well. It wasn't his fault that every single whimper set his body aflame; it wasn't his fault that the more recent, lengthy moan from the detective made him moan as well, breathing heavily as he attempted to finish off his task. Yagami Raito had never been so aroused in his entire life. It was, admittedly, incredibly painful, just how aroused he was, but he wasn't worried about. All he cared for was to finish what he started, and ultimately please the older one. He was hardly concerned, unlike L, for the possibility of intrusion. Everyone else could go to hell...all that mattered was this room, and the two feverish males inside it.

The detective was nearing his physical limits now, edging closer to the goal of Raito's orchestrations. All of the heat in his body fanned steadily downwards to the sensitized area, and he gasped, choking against the blockade of white knuckles in front of his tongue. It was all he could do to bite back the long, soundless howl building behind his fist, shaking his head back and forth, slowly, painfully, as if he was denying that this was actually happening to him. As new as the experience of his pleasure at someone else's hands was, the knowledge that his release was imminent was an old, familiar one. Ryuuzaki's vision blurred as he arched the curve of his neck, otherwise immobile with the relief of coming.

Raito had indeed been waiting for this moment, yet still was not prepared with the onslaught that invaded his mouth and senses completely. Regularity could never have been truly achieved, so he ignored it for the time being in order to sit up and crawl needily back toward the detective, not really touching him in fear of rejection, adorning a blatant erection and an unmistakable blush. Sweat still beaded on his fore head before he twisted around so that he was parallel to L. Both of them donned rumpled appearances, making them one of a kind. The miniscule noises previously vocalized by Ryuuzaki still rung, fresh in the ears of the Yagami boy. Light shudders fled down his spine—and he hated every minute of it.

What a filthy hypocrite Yagami Raito was made to be.

Ryuuzaki was only vaguely aware of Raito sliding up beside him. _What to do_. His uncertainty made him anxious, and his beatific expression crumpled into a frown. Eventually, the detective turned on his side, reaching out battered fingertips to brush away traces of his mess from the corners of the boy's mouth, more matter-of-factly than tenderly. The time to kiss him had probably long passed, and Ryuuzaki was almost mournful of it, but he tried regardless, pressing his lips very gently to Raito's. It was an appropriate ending, he thought in his limited experience, though he kept his hands to himself.

Raito noted the finality that the kiss embodied, and for the moment, refused to accept it. He would do well to remember their circumstances later, when he was in his right mind, but now he allowed himself to be wholly disappointed. Through the duration of the soft kiss, the Kira suspect sought to think of something to say—something meaningful that would keep the moment from going stale and awkward, as it was sure to. Usually, lovers said something along the lines of "I love you". He knew that they were not that, and a part of him welled in unfounded displeasure. So instead, he addressed the physical—the tangible—in order to make things seem more real as he pulled regretfully away from the contact, fearing it would be the last.

He was acting like a damned fool.

"I…need to go to the bathroom, Ryuuzaki…" he stated mellifluously, casting his eyes down to his own crotch, clearly embarrassed.

Here was his obligation, L concluded, noting the embarrassment on his friend's features. He himself was duly satisfied, and the euphoria of their experience fading to reality, in which he was developing a bit of shame for his helplessness against desire. Despite that, leaving Raito to deal with his...problem alone was borderline cruelty. The detective redressed himself with a remarkable adeptness and composure in comparison to his earlier state, and in a fluid movement had caught hold of the boy's wrists.

"No, you don't," he said, around the swell of his lower lip between his teeth, gaze cast anywhere else but the other's. "I'll take care of it." Sitting himself up with the barest of sighs for the effort, he ran his battered fingertips down the line of the zipper in Raito's pants, letting his intentions be known. The employment of his mouth was not something L was particularly eager for, but his hands would make equal work of it, provided the younger was game.

Being the honorable, unimposing person that he was, Yagami Raito's first instinct was to deny the other in his offer. His logic, and it was usually infallible, led him to believe that letting the detective take care of something like…that…would be incredibly inappropriate. Thus, he bit his tongue for a moment, stomach dancing intricately under webs of blood vessels and heated flesh, contributive to the barely there pressure from long, thin fingers on his zipper. That sense of unfairness again welled in his gut as he realized that the other was completely sane now from his release, yet the younger remained lost in stimulation. Shameful indeed.

Raito considered his opposite for a moment, propped up on his palms.

"Do…as you wish…" he said lowly, choosing his words in order to give the raven-haired one an out if he so desired it.

Ryuuzaki peered intently at his companion, considering his options. He was acutely clear-headed, now that he was no longer gilded with lust, and the difference was almost surreal.

"It would be unfair to decline," he murmured, fingers making a languid circuit over the zipper, distracted. There seemed to be some serious thought put into his dilemma, judging by the deepening crease of his mouth. But then again, what didn't L take seriously.

"Would it hurt your pride, Raito-kun?" he probed, pausing his teasing strokes for a moment, realizing the effect it might have on the boy's attention. The honorific had returned, and sounded stale and formal even to the detective after the passionate groans of Raito's name sans.

The honorific was duly noted, and Raito was stunned to realize that it was this he had noticed first, and the question was deciphered later. After all, Ryuuzaki was in a very elevated position with his cleared mind. That alone was enough to damage the brunette's inflated ego.

"I..." he began, trying to fathom a way to delicately phrase his reply. "I won't lie to you, Ryuuzaki. Yes, it would. However..." His eyes met his friend's face, whether or not the detective may have been looking back at him. "I..." He faltered again, wondering exactly what he wanted to say, without being too abrupt or forward. Not that being forward was much of an issue after their previous actions. "I want you to, and...I don't think I'm in a mind, at the moment, to be too concerned about my own petty thoughts of pride." His expression was bordering on yearning, but he suppressed it as soon as it had come, not wanting to appear like a simpering fool in front of this man, the greatest detective in the world.

Perhaps it was a trick of the swimming lighting, or the way the world's greatest detective angled his gaze away from the uncomfortable sight of Raito struggling with his own pride, but sympathy seemed to infiltrate Ryuuzaki's stoic expression. The faltering words were as close to a plea as he could stand, and had his friend allowed the yearning to enter his expression, foolish or not, L would have probably made his excuses and fled as far as the slack on his chain would allow him. There was an awkward struggling in his breast, between salvaging what was left of his pride and finishing what he had started, which was the right thing to do.

"Then I will," L breathed, after a few moments of parted-lip pause. L's heart rate spike with a sort of morbid anticipation as he slipped his fingers beneath the zipper he had been fondling so nonchalantly. It would not do to get excited again, he reminded himself, but the mantra was for naught when he found the warm and solid length and took a sharp breath against the sudden pressure in his throat. Ryuuzaki applied the pads of his fingers in a repeat performance of the earlier play on the zipper, almost timidly.

For a moment, Raito had assumed that the other would indeed back down, suddenly uninterested in the task he had inquired about only moments before. Their discomfiting exchange made it seem as though Raito's changed nature was unacceptable, and therefore displeasing. However, he was not prepared for the soft, cursory mutterings of the other one, and the sudden contact with his all too obvious erection. The powdered blush returned along with a hitching of breath; his eyes glazed over quite abruptly before blinking away the shock, leaving only the feeling. Tentative or not, the Yagami boy couldn't help but to sigh audibly in relief at being touched. His hips inclined of their own volition, eyes immediately falling shut in order to block out...well, he didn't know what exactly he was keeping from himself.

The rolling pelvis was a mighty distraction, not only for the discomfort of the tug of fabric across the dark-haired male's ensconced knuckles, but for the kick it gave his excitable heart. The detective could hear it thudding softly in his ears, like a watch swathed in cotton. As loudly as his own body was conversing with him, he noted the sigh, which made prickles of goosebumps along the backs of his arms.

"Ahh," whispered Ryuuzaki, squeezing his own eyelids snugly together as he struggled with the waves of heat rising to his cheeks. He expressed his frustrations in the form of increasing pressure and speed in his ministrations, inclining his head to bury his moistening, ragged breaths against the Yagami boy's neck.

"Nnghh...Ryuu...za..." Raito hissed, the sound of the 'a' prolonged in more of a moan. His midsection pressed insistently into the other's skillful fingers, sweat beading on his forehead. Raito's head sagged backward on its sinewy axis, providing even more room for his companion to lean there—breaths sending the college student's hair to stand on end.

The further baring of Ratio's throat was tempting, and made Ryuuzaki's mouth run dry with the sight of it, but he was far too occupied with the maintenance of the skill in his hands to make full use of the opportunity. What the Yagami boy received instead were incomplete brushes of the insides of L's lips, where the flesh was most warm and moist, and the faint ridges of his teeth in a lackluster attempt at biting. Were this the only attention paid, the intimacy would be tepid at best, but the increased intent of his fondling in response to the rising decibel of the boy's groaning made his work less like that of an inexperienced prom date. The detective was far too engrossed in the intricacies of his touch to mind much if his mouth was up to par. Later, perhaps later, when Raito was satisfied, they could merge in lips and trade their tongues again, which L found surprisingly intriguing and enjoyable, but the chances of that happening were slim.

And really, Raito was perfectly content with a less than perfect oral performance, as long as he had that miraculous touch. Hard, fast pressure forced on his arousal was soon too much; the male came in an instant, a long groan spilling from pursed lips, pants heavy and satisfied. Clarity was restored to his dimmed mind, and realized all too suddenly that...to put it as mildly as the detective had before, their relationship had indeed escalated. From friendship to physical intimacy, as was stated before, though the brunette was certain that L did not expect what came next, leading up to this point: Raito's chest heaving in delight and mortification all in one crucial moment. And, being in no shape to zip up his pants, nor move at all, his chin fell darkly, until he was at eye level with the man who again had moved in towards him. In fact, the younger one had grown far too accustomed to the intoxicating nearness of the owl-eyed one.

And that was that, L supposed—really, it was so disappointing the speed and finality of an orgasm, done and forgotten in the blink of an eye. Ryuuzaki re-established his composure with a series of controlled breaths in through his nostrils and out through his slackened lips, finding an abashedness once more in meeting Raito's gaze. He extracted his fingers from beneath the fabric, leaving four delicate, damp trails along his friend's abdomen as the slender digits retreated. And as a parting favor, L zipped and buttoned the boy's clothes back into order, giving them an awkward, departing pat. As reluctant as he was to actually look his companion in the eye, he was equally if not more so reluctant to put distance between their bodies, and so hovered there above him, close enough to touch but not quite daring to. He was unable to stop himself, however, from brushing the dampened bangs away from the younger's brow, in a manner more matter-of-fact than affectionate.

A pause fermented the space between them, as reality came scrambling back.

Raito did not even notice when L began to move away plainly, pulling his partner from the bed and towards the door, reaching for the knob with a deliberate slowness, as though waiting for the other one to say something—anything.

"Ryuuzaki…?" the teen tried lowly, truth seeping into his veins as the other one tensed, as he always did when someone touched him in a particularly unsettling manner. Unspoken words were exchanged, and Raito was reminded of a children's book he read in an intermediate French class. _The Little Prince_, it was called; where a little boy races over space and time itself in order to find a way to care for a rose that he did not know how to love. It was said that the rose was an ephemeral thing to worry over—it was notwithstanding, and both of them were. The parallels were both ironic and disgusting to the brunette.

Kira and L. Any relationship between them was ephemeral, because neither knew how to love the other. How…appropriate.

"You asked me what I would do if I were Kira, Ryuuzaki," Raito pointed out, as they journeyed down the hallway again, back to the work, never to speak of their encounter again. "I don't think I answered you honestly." He paused as L listened intently, though was still turned away.

"I would have to kill you."

L nodded slowly, a saddened smile sneaking onto his lips. Ah, so he was right.

"We will see."

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"_Vous êtes belles, mais vous êtes vides...On ne peut pas mourir pour vous."_

_-Le Petit Prince, Chapter _

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**A/N: I've been having issues with _Hydra _for reasons that I really wouldn't care to explain, but know that I'm getting on it as soon as possible. Meanwhile, enjoy this story as an assurance that I'm still alive.**

**My beta for this piece was recipe for insanity, who is an amazing person. I didn't exactly take her advice through all of this story (as in, I didn't cut it down like I was supposed to), but I have my reasons for posting this earlier than intended.**

**-MJ**


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